Sister M. Rosalie Downing (Ethel), 97, a Sister of Mercy for 65 years, died Thursday, August 30, 2012, at Warde Health Center, Windham, New Hampshire, after a brief illness. A native of Eliot, Maine, Sister Rosalie was the daughter of Charles W. and Mary D. (Furbish) Downing.
Sister Rosalie received a B.A. degree in Education from Mount St. Mary College, Hooksett, New Hampshire. For more than 40 years, she taught at Catholic schools in New Hampshire and Rhode Island. In New Hampshire, she taught at St. Patrick School, Manchester; Sacred Heart School, Lebanon; Holy Trinity School, Somersworth; Immaculate Conception School, Penacook; St. Joseph School, Keene; St. Mary and Dover Catholic, Dover; St. Marie School, Manchester; and St. Christopher School, Nashua. Sister Rosalie also taught at St. John School in West Warwick, Rhode Island.
Sister Rosalie was a gifted musician, artist, poet, and quilter.
Family members include a brother, Charles Donald Downing, and his wife, Irene, of York Beach, Maine; a niece, Diane McRoberts of Minnesota; and three nephews, Jere Downing of Massachusetts; Lawrence Downing of Maine; and Edmund Downing of New Hampshire.
Calling hours will be 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., on Thursday, September 6, at the Warde Health Center, 21 Searles Road, Windham, New Hampshire. A Mass of Christian Burial will follow at 10:30 a.m. in the chapel at Warde Health Center. Burial will be at St. Joseph Cemetery, Bedford, New Hampshire.
Memorial donations may be made to the Sisters of Mercy, 21 Searles Road, PO Box 420, Windham, NH 03087-0420.